medicine

A2 Topic:Health & Medicine

US /ˈmɛd.ɪ.sɪn/ UK /ˈmɛd.ɪ.s(ɪ)n/ See IPA manual

Freq #1747

Meanings

1

noun
A substance you take to treat or cure an illness.

This medicine has fewer side effects than the others.
2

noun
The study and practice of treating and preventing illness.

She is studying medicine because she wants to be a doctor.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a substance you take to... drug medication

Word family

Forms medicines

Derived forms aeromedicineantimedicineauriculomedicinebiomedicinechronomedicinecryomedicinecybermedicineelectromedicineethnomedicinefolk-medicinegeomedicineiatromedicine

Related forms diagnosis diseaseetiologymedic medical medicament medicate medication medicinal pharmaceutical physicianpostmedication

Etymology

From Middle English medicin, from Middle French medicine, from Old French medecine, from Latin medicīna (“the healing art, medicine, a physician's shop, a remedy, medicine”), feminine of medicīnus (“of or belonging to physic or surgery, or to a physician or surgeon”), from medicus (“a physician, surgeon”). The extended sense of "Indigenous magic" is a calque of Ojibwe mashkiki (“medicine”) or mide (or cognates in related languages) when used in compounds such as Grand Medicine Society, medicine lodge, medicine dance, medicine bag, medicine wheel, medicine man, Medicine Line, and bad medicine o…

*med- Proto-Indo-European medicin Middle English medicine Middle French medecine Old French medicīna Latin

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External links

# medicine

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈmɛd.ɪ.sɪn/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈmɛd.ɪ.s(ɪ)n/
**Frequency rank:** 1747

## Meanings
1. A substance you take to treat or cure an illness.
2. The study and practice of treating and preventing illness.

## Examples
- This medicine has fewer side effects than the others.
- She is studying medicine because she wants to be a doctor.

## Derived Forms
- aeromedicine
- antimedicine
- auriculomedicine
- biomedicine
- chronomedicine
- cryomedicine
- cybermedicine
- electromedicine
- ethnomedicine
- folk-medicine
- geomedicine
- iatromedicine

## Related Forms
- diagnosis
- disease
- etiology
- medic
- medical
- medicament
- medicate
- medication
- medicinal
- pharmaceutical
- physician
- postmedication

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *med-
- Root: medicin
- Root: medicine
- Root: medecine
- Root: medicīna

## Etymology
From Middle English medicin, from Middle French medicine, from Old French medecine, from Latin medicīna (“the healing art, medicine, a physician's shop, a remedy, medicine”), feminine of medicīnus (“of or belonging to physic or surgery, or to a physician or surgeon”), from medicus (“a physician, surgeon”). The extended sense of "Indigenous magic" is a calque of Ojibwe mashkiki (“medicine”) or mide (or cognates in related languages) when used in compounds such as Grand Medicine Society, medicine lodge, medicine dance, medicine bag, medicine wheel, medicine man, Medicine Line, and bad medicine o…

## AI Etymology
Medicine comes from Middle English medicin, from Middle French medicine, from Old French medecine, from Latin medicīna (“the healing art, medicine, a physician's shop, a remedy, medicine”), feminine of medicīnus (“of or belonging to physic or surgery, or to a physician or surgeon”), from medicus (“a physician, surgeon”). The extended sense of "Indigenous magic" is a calque of Ojibwe mashkiki (“medicine”) or mide (or cognate forms in related languages). In present-day English its meanings include a substance you take to treat or cure an illness and the study and practice of treating and preventing illness. The historical chain runs through *med- (Proto-Indo-European), medicin (Middle English), medicine (Middle French), medecine (Old French), and medicīna (Latin).

## Topics
- Health & Medicine

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medicine

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